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Thursday, June 9, 2016

Brokenness to Beauty – A Book Review

I have the privilege of reviewing
Jacqueline Wallace’s book, Brokenness to Beauty, today. Drawn from her own experience
with cancer and myasthenia gravis, Ms. Wallace shares her journey in an authentic and
relatable manner. Her battles with fear are real but so is her hope. Her book
seeks to encourage through prayer, Bible reading, having a community of
support, and a purpose to get up each day.

After her first cancer surgery
she wrote in her blog: “What is hopeless and impossible with man is not so for
God, for all things are possible with God. Am I scared? Of course I am. Do I
have anger and fears? Absolutely. I cry to the Lord who hears and understands,
and who alone can do anything about them. I cast myself on his mercy. If others
hadn’t been in similar situations we wouldn’t have the Scriptures, which are
full of such agonies. Now I choose to affirm my faith in the God Who Is” (pp.
17-18).

Ms. Wallace goes on to say: “The
roots of my life, the foundations of my life, are set deeply in the Word of God
and the God of the Word. Going back to my roots in God and his Word gives me
perspective in the midst of pain and struggle and the fear of the unknown, for
the unknown is only unknown to me, not to God. I can rest in his goodness even
when I cannot see my way ahead…My faith is in him, not in my ability to have
all the answers” (p. 132).

I had no way of knowing when I got
Brokenness to Beautythat I’d be entering a very difficult period in my life.
But God did. And it’s exactly what I needed. Ms. Wallace doesn't just share from a place of brokenness but also beauty in her journey through chronic
illness and cancer. Though much of what she wrote was familiar to me, the way in
which she delivered it showed great spiritual insight and really spoke to me in
a fresh way. I was reminded of the beauty of prayer through several Bible psalm
references and her blog quotes. One of my favorite Oswald Chambers quotes she
shared reminds that “worship and intercession must go together, the one is
impossible without the other.” It is abundantly clear that the author has a
firm grasp on how to rest in God and have a rich spiritual life despite
suffering and brokenness. This is a book I will continue to reference in the
future through my own spiritual journey with Christ.

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